Sprout E-course Alumnus Story: Wahyu Perdana Yudistiawan

Politikus is an online tool that tracks political corruption and influence in Indonesia to promote accountability in politics. It is set to launch before the 2014 election in Indonesia. It was started by Wahyu Perdana Yudistiawan, a 26-year-old Indonesian currently living in Singapore. Yudistiawan was inspired by the actions of the recently elected governor and vice governor of Jakarta, who have broken with tradition and post YouTube videos of their meetings as a way to promote transparency in politics. He explains: “This inspired us in asking, how can we make Indonesian politics more transparent?” Political corruption is widely reported in the Indonesian media, but it is quickly forgotten by the public once the headlines have passed. There are no systematic databases (unlike in the US where websites such as opensecrets.org track the influence of campaign contributions on candidates). By the time a new election rolls around, most voters have forgotten about a scandal two or three years earlier. Politikus provides background records of politicians, including any coverage of corruption or undue influence, to help voters make their decisions. It archives media coverage, voting records and relevant financial information that is part of the public record. It will be a powerful tool in 2014, and even more powerful in 5 years, on time for the next election. While Politikus is set to launch in 2013, Yudistiawan explains that it is still in process: “It’s a very tight schedule. So a plan B for us would be not to track all the candidates but rather to focus on the elected officials in 2014 and keep their records until 2019. This is a backup plan if we cannot [fully] chase the 2014 election.” Yudistiawan attended Microsoft’s YouthSpark in Singapore (which he describes as “two intense days!”) as well as TakingITGlobal’s Sprout e-course, which informed his team’s process in planning, marketing and getting funds to complete Politikus. “I’ve benefitted a lot from the framework and coaching given through the Sprout e-course,” he says. It also helped Yudistiawan to streamline the process and make the website as accessible as possible, through peer review in the Sprout and TakingITGlobal online communities. By making the acts of politicians more transparent online, Politikus puts pressure on politicians to clean up their image and rewards honest politicians by helping to inform voters. Politikus doesn’t make endorsements but rather lets the record speak for itself, and the voters choose accordingly.